Robert Redeker is a high school philosophy teacher in France. Recently he wrote an article for Le Figaro criticizing Islam and Muhammad. His article, below, basically states that Islam is intolerant and violent. Today Redeker and his family are in hiding in France to avoid being murdered by Muslims, thereby proving the truth of his article. Islam is violent, intolerant and seditious. The question that should be in the minds of all Westerners is this: How do we get rid of Islam? How do we extricate it from our midst before it seriously undermines our safety and our freedoms?
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By Robert Redeker
What should the free world do while facing Islamist intimidation? The reactions caused by Benedict XVI’s analysis of Islam and violence highlight the underhanded maneuver carried out by Islam to stifle what the West values more than anything, and which does not exist in any Muslim country: freedom of thought and expression.
Islam tries to impose its rules on Europe: the opening of public swimming pools at certain hours reserved exclusively for women, a ban on caricaturing this religion, demands for special diets for Muslim children in school cafeterias, the struggle to impose the veil at school, accusations of Islamophobia against free spirits.
How can one explain the ban on wearing thongs on Paris-Beaches this summer? The reasoning put forth was bizarre: women wearing thong-bikinis would risk “disturbing the peace.” Did this mean that bands of frustrated youths would become violent while being offended by displays of beauty? Or were the authorities scared of Islamist demonstrations by virtue squads near Paris-Beaches? [Paris-Beaches refers to the use of the banks of the Seine as swimming beaches during the summer months.]
However, the authorization of the veil on the street is more disturbing to public peace than wearing a thong-bikini, because it invites complaints against upholding the oppression of women. This ban represents an Islamization of sensibilities in France, a more or less conscious submission to the dictates of Islam. At the very least it is the result of the insidious Muslim oppression of the spirit: even those who protested the introduction of a “Jean Paul II Square” in Paris would not be opposed to the construction of mosques. Islam is trying to force Europe to yield to its vision of humanity.
As in the past with Communism, the West finds itself under ideological watch. Islam presents itself, like defunct Communism, as an alternative to the Western world. In the way of Communism before it, Islam, to conquer the spirit, plays on a sensitive string. It prides itself on a legitimacy which troubles Western consciences, which is attentive to others: it claims to be the voice of the oppressed of the planet. Yesterday, the voice of the poor supposedly came from Moscow, today it originates in Mecca! Again, today, western intellectuals have become the eye of the Koran, as they were once the eye of Moscow. They now excommunicate people because of Islamophobia, as they did before because of anti-communism.
This opening to others, specific to the West, is a secularization of Christianity that can be summarized thus: the other person must come before myself. The Westerner, heir to Christianity, has his soul exposed bare. He runs the risk of being seen as weak. With the same ardor as Communism, Islam treats generosity, broadmindedness, tolerance, gentleness, freedom of women and of manners, democratic values, as marks of decadence. They are weaknesses that it seeks to exploit, by means of useful idiots, self-righteous consciences drowning in nice feelings, in order to impose the Koranic order on the Western world itself.
The Koran is a book of unparalleled violence. Maxime Rodinson states, in Encyclopedia Universalis, some truths in France are as significant as they are taboo. On one hand: “Mohammed revealed in Medina unsuspected qualities as political leader and military chief (…) He resorted to private war, by then a prevalent custom in Arabia (….) Mohammed soon sent small groups of partisans to attack the Meccan caravans, thus punishing his unbelieving compatriots and simultaneously acquiring the booty of a wealthy man.”
There is more: “Mohammed profited from this success by eradicating the Jewish tribe which resided in Medina, the Quarayza, whom he accused of suspect behaviour.” And: “After the death of Khadija, he married a widow, a good housewife, called Sawda, and in addition to the little Aisha, barely ten years old. His erotic predilections, held in check for a long time, led him to ten simultaneous marriages.”
A merciless war chief, plunderer, slaughterer of Jews and a polygamist, such is the man revealed through the Koran.
The Catholic church is not above reproach. Its history is strewn with dark pages, for which it has officially repented. The Inquisition, the hounding of witches, the execution of the philosophers Giordano Bruno and Vanini, those wrong-thinking Epicureans, in the 18th century the execution of the knight of La Barre for impiety, do not plead in the church’s favor. But what differentiates Christianity from Islam is obvious: it is always possible to go back to true evangelical values, the peaceful character of Jesus as opposed to the deviations of the Church.
None of the faults of the Church have their roots in the Gospel. Jesus is non-violent. Going back to Jesus is akin to forswearing the excesses of the Church. Going back to Muhammad, to the contrary, reinforces hate and violence. Jesus is a master of love, Muhammad is a master of hatred.
The stoning of Satan, each year in Mecca, is not only an obsolete superstition but one that sets the stage for a hysterical crowd flirting with barbarity. Its import is anthropological. Here is a rite, which each Muslim is invited to submit to, that emphasizes violence as a sacred duty in the very heart of the believer.
This stoning, accompanied each year by the accidental trampling to death of some of the believers, sometimes up to several hundred, is a rite that feeds archaic violence.
Instead of getting rid of this archaic violence, and thus imitating Judaism and Christianity (Judaism starts when it abandons human sacrifice, and enters civilization; Christianity transforms sacrifice through the Eucharist), Islam builds a nest for this violence, where it will incubate. Whereas Judaism and Christianity are religions whose rites spurn violence by delegitimizing it, Islam is a religion that exalts violence and hatred in its everyday rites and sacred book.
Hatred and violence dwell in the book with which every Muslim is brought up, the Koran. As in the Cold War, where violence and intimidation were the methods used by an ideology hell bent on hegemony, so today Islam tries to put its leaden mantel over all the world. Benedict XVI’s cruel experience is testimony to this. Nowadays, the West has to be called the “free world” in comparison to the Muslim world; likewise, the enemies of the “free world,” the zealous bureaucrats of the Koran’s vision, swarm in the very center of the free world.
Postscript: Asked to describe the sort of threats he had received, Mr. Redeker replied, “You will never feel secure on this earth. One billion, three hundred thousand Muslims are ready to kill you.”
Ain't it the truth baby.
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Hat tip Michelle Malkin and Little Green Footballs. See Fausta's Blog for more information.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Dem's Dirty Politics Heating Up: Ready for the Election
The Democrats have a cadre of agents who carry their water, not the least of which is the mainstream media. The New York Times, Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times are a trifecta for the Democrats, nothing more than house organs for the Democratic Party. Other pro-Democrat organizations like CBS, ABC, NBC and MSN.com can also be expected to parrot the party line.
You can easily tell what the Democrat theme will be for the November elections, you can already see the signs in the above Donkey agents. Bush's war on terror only creates more terrorists; Afghanistan is seeing the revitalization of the Taliban; Iraq is a Jihadist magnet, blah, blah, blah.
One of the most crass attempts of the above propaganda outlets was to cherry pick the NIE report on terrorism and to conclude that fighting the terrorists only creates more terrorists, so the war is counter productive and doomed to fail. Selected quotes from the NIE report seem to support this conclusion. But if you read the whole thing, the report reaches the opposite conclusion, that the war in Iraq could result in the defeat of the terrorists as more of them are killed and more and more Iraqis make use of the democratic process to achieve their goals.
In order to counter the leaked NIE information, Bush declassified the report so the public could read the whole thing and learn, once again, that the Democrat House Organs have deliberately lied for political gain, while giving comfort and propaganda to our terrorist enemies in the process. This was all made possible by Democrat partisans in the Intelligence Community who put their Party before their country by leaking those parts of the report.
All this followed Bill Clinton's laughable harangue at Chris Wallace on Fox News, after Wallace asked him why he didn't do more to stop Bin Laden while he was in office. Clinton was petty, insulting and accusatory to Wallace and made himself look like a prize jackass in the process. Egad, don't you just love the Dimocrats? Wouldn't you just love to have them protecting you from the terrorists instead of hawkish Republicans? Of course you would.
You can easily tell what the Democrat theme will be for the November elections, you can already see the signs in the above Donkey agents. Bush's war on terror only creates more terrorists; Afghanistan is seeing the revitalization of the Taliban; Iraq is a Jihadist magnet, blah, blah, blah.
One of the most crass attempts of the above propaganda outlets was to cherry pick the NIE report on terrorism and to conclude that fighting the terrorists only creates more terrorists, so the war is counter productive and doomed to fail. Selected quotes from the NIE report seem to support this conclusion. But if you read the whole thing, the report reaches the opposite conclusion, that the war in Iraq could result in the defeat of the terrorists as more of them are killed and more and more Iraqis make use of the democratic process to achieve their goals.
In order to counter the leaked NIE information, Bush declassified the report so the public could read the whole thing and learn, once again, that the Democrat House Organs have deliberately lied for political gain, while giving comfort and propaganda to our terrorist enemies in the process. This was all made possible by Democrat partisans in the Intelligence Community who put their Party before their country by leaking those parts of the report.
All this followed Bill Clinton's laughable harangue at Chris Wallace on Fox News, after Wallace asked him why he didn't do more to stop Bin Laden while he was in office. Clinton was petty, insulting and accusatory to Wallace and made himself look like a prize jackass in the process. Egad, don't you just love the Dimocrats? Wouldn't you just love to have them protecting you from the terrorists instead of hawkish Republicans? Of course you would.
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Hugo Chavez: La Cucaracha vs. El Diablo
La cucaracha, la cucaracha
Ya no puede caminar
Porque no tiene, porque le falta
Marijuana que fumar.
Ah, the Hero of the Left, Hugo Chavez, Commie dictator of Venezuela, had his 15 minutes of fame this week. He stood before the United Nations and called US President George Bush "El Diablo."
Well Spanish nicknames are lots of fun, so we have decided that "La Cucaracha" is most appropriate for Senor Chavez. Not only is it the title of a popular drinking song, it is also the name of a particularly useless and annoying insect, the cockroach. Since Chavez appears to have been drinking before his asinine rant before the UN, and because he resembles a cockroach both in appearance and his degree of utility to the human race, we have chosen "La Cucaracha" for Senor Chavez' nickname. Quite appropriate, no?
There was one embarrassing moment for La Cucaracha in his UN appearance. When he stood before the lectern, he stated that he smelled sulfur, that the whole place reeked of sulfur. La Cucaracha was sure that this meant "El Diablo" must have appeared in the same spot recently.
But then an aide stood up and said, "Oh no, Senor Cucaracha, it isn't sulfur! Remember, you had chili for lunch!"
Unable to get all the windows open fast enough, Turtle Bay was soon deserted. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
UPDATE: Read Jeff Jacoby's take on this left-wing jackass.
Ya no puede caminar
Porque no tiene, porque le falta
Marijuana que fumar.
Ah, the Hero of the Left, Hugo Chavez, Commie dictator of Venezuela, had his 15 minutes of fame this week. He stood before the United Nations and called US President George Bush "El Diablo."
Well Spanish nicknames are lots of fun, so we have decided that "La Cucaracha" is most appropriate for Senor Chavez. Not only is it the title of a popular drinking song, it is also the name of a particularly useless and annoying insect, the cockroach. Since Chavez appears to have been drinking before his asinine rant before the UN, and because he resembles a cockroach both in appearance and his degree of utility to the human race, we have chosen "La Cucaracha" for Senor Chavez' nickname. Quite appropriate, no?
There was one embarrassing moment for La Cucaracha in his UN appearance. When he stood before the lectern, he stated that he smelled sulfur, that the whole place reeked of sulfur. La Cucaracha was sure that this meant "El Diablo" must have appeared in the same spot recently.
But then an aide stood up and said, "Oh no, Senor Cucaracha, it isn't sulfur! Remember, you had chili for lunch!"
Unable to get all the windows open fast enough, Turtle Bay was soon deserted. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
UPDATE: Read Jeff Jacoby's take on this left-wing jackass.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Islam: the World's Ugliest Religion
The Pope was right to state that Islam is both inhuman and evil. Unfortunately, because the statement is true he was forced to issue an "apology" to keep the inhuman and evil religion from murdering Catholics throughout the world. The Muslims have already murdered an Italian nun in Somalia. Some big, brave Muslim shot an elderly nun in the back.
We must continue to publicly point out the evils of Islam, no matter how many riots that sick culture can generate. Islam is evil. Islam is inhuman. Islam kills. Islam is the only major religion that sanctions religious murder. Islam is the major source of strife, war and killing in the world today. Islam has killed tens of millions since its inception and continues to slaughter tens of thousands today. Islam oppresses its populations with a religious version of despotism and tyranny. Some of my fellow bloggers talk of reforming Islam, but I say, what for? It would be like trying to reform rape, murder and robbery, which is what Islam is all about.
Islam preaches evil and violence in its holy book, the Koran; the written history of the life of its founder, Muhammad, shows that he was violent, intolerant, hateful and greedy. He possessed none of the virtues that most of the world's religions celebrate: charity, love, mercy, compassion and peace. Muhammad, both through his example and his words, advocated violent conquest of other peoples, forced conversions to Islam (and mass murder for those who refused). He kidnapped, raped, tortured, robbed and murdered like the cold-blooded savage that he was. Muhammad was no more a man of God than Blackbeard the Pirate, Attilla the Hun, Genghis Khan, Jack the Ripper or Ted Bundy.
Islam is inhuman and evil because Muhammad was inhuman and evil. The rotten ideology was created for one purpose only: to elevate to divine status the lust, greed and hatred of a very evil man.
UPDATE: John at Powerline had this to say about the Pope's apology:
We must continue to publicly point out the evils of Islam, no matter how many riots that sick culture can generate. Islam is evil. Islam is inhuman. Islam kills. Islam is the only major religion that sanctions religious murder. Islam is the major source of strife, war and killing in the world today. Islam has killed tens of millions since its inception and continues to slaughter tens of thousands today. Islam oppresses its populations with a religious version of despotism and tyranny. Some of my fellow bloggers talk of reforming Islam, but I say, what for? It would be like trying to reform rape, murder and robbery, which is what Islam is all about.
Islam preaches evil and violence in its holy book, the Koran; the written history of the life of its founder, Muhammad, shows that he was violent, intolerant, hateful and greedy. He possessed none of the virtues that most of the world's religions celebrate: charity, love, mercy, compassion and peace. Muhammad, both through his example and his words, advocated violent conquest of other peoples, forced conversions to Islam (and mass murder for those who refused). He kidnapped, raped, tortured, robbed and murdered like the cold-blooded savage that he was. Muhammad was no more a man of God than Blackbeard the Pirate, Attilla the Hun, Genghis Khan, Jack the Ripper or Ted Bundy.
Islam is inhuman and evil because Muhammad was inhuman and evil. The rotten ideology was created for one purpose only: to elevate to divine status the lust, greed and hatred of a very evil man.
UPDATE: John at Powerline had this to say about the Pope's apology:
There is a fundamental conflict here between many Muslim leaders, who demand
that no one say anything about Islam except as approved by them, and the West,
which recognizes freedom of speech. Pope Benedict serves neither himself nor the
West when he appears to recognize as legitimate Muslim demands for a veto on all
discussion of their religion and their place in the world. The Pope's message to
Muslims should not be an apology; it should be: Get over it.
Saturday, September 16, 2006
The Ugliest Imam and Other Islamic News
WELCOME LOSers from the LEAGUE OF THE SOUTH! If you have been directed here from the League of the South website, you may also want to try this post: Saber Point: A Paleocon's Assault on Truth and Reason. In it I give intellectual pantywaist Mike Tuggle a public spanking on his bare butt for all the world to see!
Then if you liked that, check out Lew Rockwell's adventure in "bumping uglies" with America-Hater Cindy Sheehan at the following link: Saber Point: Gross-Out of the Week: Lew Rockwell & Cindy Sheehan Knock Knees.
Then, when you are through with those posts, ask yourself honestly: why are you still a member of the League of the South? Get a clue...QUIT.
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Seems the Muslims are outraged again. This time it's because the Pope quoted some 14th Century emperor who told the nasty truth about Islam being "inhuman and evil." Well then, I guess a bumper sticker that says "Islam Sucks Donkey Dick" is totally out of the question.
I wonder if scientists have ever dissected a defunct terrorist and checked out the Islamic adrenal glands. I hear they're HUGE. I guess it's nature's way of compensating.
Meanwhile, the man on the right has won the 2006 first prize for the World's Ugliest Imam. Now if we could just talk him into a bigger turban, one that covers his whole head.
Killtown was quoted today in the Conspiracy Times. He said "Anyone with half a brain knows that 9/11 was an inside job and a massive Bush conspiracy."
For those of us with a whole brain, though, that just sounds downright preposterous.
Developing.....
Then if you liked that, check out Lew Rockwell's adventure in "bumping uglies" with America-Hater Cindy Sheehan at the following link: Saber Point: Gross-Out of the Week: Lew Rockwell & Cindy Sheehan Knock Knees.
Then, when you are through with those posts, ask yourself honestly: why are you still a member of the League of the South? Get a clue...QUIT.
*********
Seems the Muslims are outraged again. This time it's because the Pope quoted some 14th Century emperor who told the nasty truth about Islam being "inhuman and evil." Well then, I guess a bumper sticker that says "Islam Sucks Donkey Dick" is totally out of the question.
I wonder if scientists have ever dissected a defunct terrorist and checked out the Islamic adrenal glands. I hear they're HUGE. I guess it's nature's way of compensating.
Meanwhile, the man on the right has won the 2006 first prize for the World's Ugliest Imam. Now if we could just talk him into a bigger turban, one that covers his whole head.
Killtown was quoted today in the Conspiracy Times. He said "Anyone with half a brain knows that 9/11 was an inside job and a massive Bush conspiracy."
For those of us with a whole brain, though, that just sounds downright preposterous.
Developing.....
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Kooky Killtown and Konspiracy Krazies
Conspiracy Kook Killtown of www.killtown.blogspot.com was upset with my earlier denunciation of his website. So he wrote a long rebuttal of my article about him. Check it out and have a laugh.
Then be sure and read Jonah Goldberg's great article today that skewers the conspiracy theorists. (Hat tip the Squiggler). The Squiggler is a great little blog, do check it out.
Jonah writes:
I'll have more to say on thr subject of the conspiracy kooks, you can be sure.
Then be sure and read Jonah Goldberg's great article today that skewers the conspiracy theorists. (Hat tip the Squiggler). The Squiggler is a great little blog, do check it out.
Jonah writes:
The masons of dementia build upon a bedrock of one absolute truth: Bad things
happen, and someone must be responsible. Upon this bedrock they pile convenient
and selective facts like bricks. Contradictory facts are clever lies. When
Popular Mechanics debunked 9/11 hokum, the immediate response from
conspiratorialists was “cover-up!” and “CIA front!” because in this perverted
faith, denying the ultimate truth must be proof of a lie.This rough beast
slouches toward sedition because it assumes not that our leaders are knaves or
even mere criminals, but that they are murderous Supermen with no loyalty to
nation, decency or law.
I'll have more to say on thr subject of the conspiracy kooks, you can be sure.
Monday, September 11, 2006
Honoring the Victims of 9/11: Robert D. Colin, Age 49
As part of the 2996 Project, the bloggers' memorial to the victims of 9/11, I was assigned Robert D. Colin to memorialize on the fifth anniversary of the tragedy. Over 3,000 bloggers are participating in this memorial so that every person who died on 9/11 will be remembered and honored today.
Robert Dana Colin, Age 49, was killed in the South Tower of the World Trade Center on (WTC No. 2) September 11, 2001.
Bob Colin was born in March of 1952 and attended Chartiers Valley High School in Brigeville, Pennsylvania. He earned a bachelor's degree in marine transportation from the U.S. Merchant Academy in Kings Point, New York. He was a maritime insurance executive for Aon Corporation, whose largest retail brokerage offices were located in the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
Bob lived with his wife Maryann and his two sons Brian (21) and Jeffrey (18) on Americas Avenue in West Babylon, New York.
Aon had offices on the 98th, 99th and 100th floor of WTC Building No. 2. Both towers had a total of 110 floors. Aon is a Gaelic word meaning "oneness" or "coming together," and that's just what the employees of this global insurance company had to do on September 11, 2001. Aon lost 175 employees on this day of infamy.
The tragedy unfolded that morning when American Airlines Flight 11 departed from Boston to Los Angeles, and was hijacked by Muslim terrorists. They flew the plane into the North Tower, or World Trade Center Building One, at 7:59 AM, EDT. The plane struck the building between the 95th and the 103rd floor.
Brian Clark, who worked for Euro Brokers on the 84th floor of the South Tower, describes the event from his perspective, when the plane hit the North Tower:
To make matters worse, WTC Security announced over the intercom that Building Two was secure and that there was no reason to evacuate. Those still there took comfort in this and remained in the building.
At 9:03 AM, EDT, the second plane, United Airlines Flight 175, hit the South Tower between the 78th and the 80th floors. Brian Clark said there was a very loud thump and the lights went out. The building swayed noticeably and air conditioning ducts, speakers and cabling fell out of the ceiling. A white fog of construction dust filled the air. Brian relived the moment:
Brian and a man he rescued, Stanley, saw the tower fall in a torrent of dust from their safe vantage point at a nearby church. Somewhere in that malestrom Robert Colin was not so lucky.
The Pittsburgh-Post Gazette tells how hard it was for Robert's widow Maryann and their two sons to cope with their overwhelming grief. To make matters even worse, Bob's father died in December of 2001. Just one day after his family held a memorial service for Bob, they attended the burial service for Bob's father. The Colin boys had lost both their father and their grandfather in a space of three months.
This was a loss difficult to endure. The Post-Gazette quotes Maryann: "I found I was very dependent on my husband," she said. "You don't realize how much you depend on somebody until they are not there."
Bob, whose life was a testament to accomplishment and productivity, would be proud of his sons, who somehow coped with the pain and went on with their lives. Brian graduated from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill in May 2002, and Jeff went on to attend Columbia University.
Other friends and fellow employees of Robert Colin shared their memories of him at an online memorial. Victor Giuffre of Yardley, PA remembers a drawing of a locomotive that friend Bob drew for him, which he still has on his wall. Thomas Bentley of Brooklyn, NY remembers Bob as a "quiet, classy guy." Laura Leston remembers her fellow high school student as a "sweet, bright, talented boy." Bruce LoBuono of New York, NY remembers his last conversation with Robert, standing at his open office door on September 10, 2001.
Robert Colin was a nice guy, a good husband and father, a good friend who went to work one day and died. Hundreds of other innocent people died that day as well. Their only sin was to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when Evil struck. Robert and the other victims did not deserve this fate.
In Aon's annual report for 2001, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Patrick G. Ryan lauded the heroism of Aon's employees. He wrote:
Postscript: Minoru Yamasaki, the architect of the World Trade Center, originally saw his creation as a monument to peace, progress and the greatness of humanity. He wrote:
Robert Dana Colin, Age 49, was killed in the South Tower of the World Trade Center on (WTC No. 2) September 11, 2001.
Bob Colin was born in March of 1952 and attended Chartiers Valley High School in Brigeville, Pennsylvania. He earned a bachelor's degree in marine transportation from the U.S. Merchant Academy in Kings Point, New York. He was a maritime insurance executive for Aon Corporation, whose largest retail brokerage offices were located in the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
Bob lived with his wife Maryann and his two sons Brian (21) and Jeffrey (18) on Americas Avenue in West Babylon, New York.
Aon had offices on the 98th, 99th and 100th floor of WTC Building No. 2. Both towers had a total of 110 floors. Aon is a Gaelic word meaning "oneness" or "coming together," and that's just what the employees of this global insurance company had to do on September 11, 2001. Aon lost 175 employees on this day of infamy.
The tragedy unfolded that morning when American Airlines Flight 11 departed from Boston to Los Angeles, and was hijacked by Muslim terrorists. They flew the plane into the North Tower, or World Trade Center Building One, at 7:59 AM, EDT. The plane struck the building between the 95th and the 103rd floor.
Brian Clark, who worked for Euro Brokers on the 84th floor of the South Tower, describes the event from his perspective, when the plane hit the North Tower:
My immediate thought was there had been an explosion one or two floors above our office. That's what I thought had happened in that first instant. Being one of the fire marshals, I was equipped with a whistle and flashlight in my office. I jumped up, grabbed them, put the whistle around my neck, and more or less yelled, "Get out! Everybody get out!" This all took me five seconds. When I looked behind me out the window, the flames were all gone, and thousands of papers were just fluttering in the air, the edges of which were all on fire. It was like flaming confetti. Very strange.Robert Colin was on a floor fifteen stories above Brian Clark. Unfortunately, we don't have the details of his last moments. At this point, he would have had time to evacuate the South Tower, along with hundreds of other workers there. But no one realized that the first plane was part of a terrorist attack. It was just assumed to be some bizarre and terrible accident.
To make matters worse, WTC Security announced over the intercom that Building Two was secure and that there was no reason to evacuate. Those still there took comfort in this and remained in the building.
At 9:03 AM, EDT, the second plane, United Airlines Flight 175, hit the South Tower between the 78th and the 80th floors. Brian Clark said there was a very loud thump and the lights went out. The building swayed noticeably and air conditioning ducts, speakers and cabling fell out of the ceiling. A white fog of construction dust filled the air. Brian relived the moment:
I was looking at Bobby Coll square in the eyes, and we knew in an instant that it was terrorism. I mean, there wasn't for sure terrorism on people's minds when the first building had been hit. Was it pilot error? Was it instrument error? Or just a one-off suicide? Horrible as it was, you didn't know for certain that it was terrorism. But when the second building got hit you instantly calculated the two of them: terrorism.Brian Clark and some others made a decision to get out, and it was a decision that saved their lives. They were above the point of impact, and several floors below them were engulfed in flame. But they took Staircase A, just at random, and it was furthest from the flames. They descended the stairway with the help of Brian's flashlight and exited minutes before the South Tower collapsed.
Brian and a man he rescued, Stanley, saw the tower fall in a torrent of dust from their safe vantage point at a nearby church. Somewhere in that malestrom Robert Colin was not so lucky.
The Pittsburgh-Post Gazette tells how hard it was for Robert's widow Maryann and their two sons to cope with their overwhelming grief. To make matters even worse, Bob's father died in December of 2001. Just one day after his family held a memorial service for Bob, they attended the burial service for Bob's father. The Colin boys had lost both their father and their grandfather in a space of three months.
This was a loss difficult to endure. The Post-Gazette quotes Maryann: "I found I was very dependent on my husband," she said. "You don't realize how much you depend on somebody until they are not there."
Bob, whose life was a testament to accomplishment and productivity, would be proud of his sons, who somehow coped with the pain and went on with their lives. Brian graduated from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill in May 2002, and Jeff went on to attend Columbia University.
Other friends and fellow employees of Robert Colin shared their memories of him at an online memorial. Victor Giuffre of Yardley, PA remembers a drawing of a locomotive that friend Bob drew for him, which he still has on his wall. Thomas Bentley of Brooklyn, NY remembers Bob as a "quiet, classy guy." Laura Leston remembers her fellow high school student as a "sweet, bright, talented boy." Bruce LoBuono of New York, NY remembers his last conversation with Robert, standing at his open office door on September 10, 2001.
Robert Colin was a nice guy, a good husband and father, a good friend who went to work one day and died. Hundreds of other innocent people died that day as well. Their only sin was to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when Evil struck. Robert and the other victims did not deserve this fate.
In Aon's annual report for 2001, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Patrick G. Ryan lauded the heroism of Aon's employees. He wrote:
Some guided colleagues and strangers to safety, only to return to help more escape. Others gave up their places in crowded elevators during the evacuation, never to be seen again. We honor them for their courage and their ultimate sacrifice. Their acts of bravery in response to unimaginable terror gave us strength when we needed it most. There could be no greater, more immediate, more visible acts, to show the world that goodness and virtue will prevail.Aon's CEO, Patrick G. Ryan, at the Remembrance Service at the Cathedral of Saint Patrick, New York City, September 24, 2001 said this:
We mourn the tragic loss of 175 Aon colleagues who perished on September 11 along with clients, insurance partners, and thousands more who spent their final moments with our friends. The suffering that we have endured has brought with it profound sadness and pain. As we remember the beloved members of the Aon family, we know that they were first a husband or wife, brother or sister, son or daughter, mom or dad, and certainly, a friend. We cry for our loved ones whose memories we treasure and whose presence we deeply miss. We also remember the courage and bravery of so many, which speaks to the extraordinary strength of the human spirit. It gives us hope that we will persevere. Aon is an ancient Celtic word meaning “coming together.” The name now has a greater meaning for all of us. May we continue to come together to lift each other up and to share the burden of suffering and sorrow. And may we continue to celebrate the lives we remember here.Today we are doing exactly that, Mr. Ryan. Robert D. Colin, may you rest in peace. We will see you again on the other side.
Postscript: Minoru Yamasaki, the architect of the World Trade Center, originally saw his creation as a monument to peace, progress and the greatness of humanity. He wrote:
World trade means peace and consequently the World Trade Center buildings in New York had a bigger purpose than just to provide room for tenants. The World Trade Center is a living symbol of man's dedication to world peace...beyond the need to make this a monument to world peace, the World Trade Center should, because of its importance, become a representation of man's belief in humanity, his need for individual dignity, his belief in the cooperation of men, and through cooperation, to find greatness.May Yamasaki's vision survive and live again in the new buildings going up at the location of the World Trade Center. We should all remain determined that Evil will not triumph over the human spirit.
Flight 93: A Tale of Heroism and Courage
The story of United Flight 93 is inspiring and heart-breaking. Ordinary people, finding themselves in a desperate situation, decide to fight their oppressors with all they've got rather than submit meekly to their fate. In their daring effort they lose their own lives, but die as heroes rather than victims and save the White House or Capitol in the process. Their lives stand as an inspiration of heroism and courage to their fellow countrymen.
One of the early viewers of the Film "Flight 93" said that the film left him with a feeling of immense respect for the heroes of that flight.
The true story of Flight 93 is that it was a United flight that took off on the morning of September 11, 2001, from Newark International Airport en route to San Francisco, California. Unknown to 39 innocent passengers on that flight were four Muslim terrorists who planned to hijack the plane and use it as a missle to destroy either the White House or the Capitol Building in Washington. Had the plane taken off on time, their mission would undoubtedly have been accomplished. However, air traffic that morning was unusually heavy and Flight 93 took off 45 minutes late.
Tom Barnett
"We're going to do something"
You can review the obituaries of 38 of the 40 victims of United Flight 93 at Find A Grave.
Mark Bingham
Told his mom "I love you"
One of the early viewers of the Film "Flight 93" said that the film left him with a feeling of immense respect for the heroes of that flight.
The true story of Flight 93 is that it was a United flight that took off on the morning of September 11, 2001, from Newark International Airport en route to San Francisco, California. Unknown to 39 innocent passengers on that flight were four Muslim terrorists who planned to hijack the plane and use it as a missle to destroy either the White House or the Capitol Building in Washington. Had the plane taken off on time, their mission would undoubtedly have been accomplished. However, air traffic that morning was unusually heavy and Flight 93 took off 45 minutes late.
Tom Barnett
"We're going to do something"
Jeremy Glick
"The others and myself have voted
to attack the terrorists. I have
my butter knife from breakfast.".
.
.
When the hijackers revealed themselves and took control of the plane, the terrorized passengers at first complied, and were herded to the back of the plane where they were made to sit on the floor. Soon thereafter, the plane, now somewhere near Cleveland, Ohio, made a sharp left bank into a Southeasterly direction, on a bearing straight for Washington, D.C. About this time the passengers began to use their cell phones and began calling relatives and operators, only to learn that three planes hijacked an hour before had been flown into the Twin Towers in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. It was then that the passengers realized that their plane was not to land, but to be used to destroy another target and that they were all going to die. Passenger Mark Bingham was able to reach his mom and tell her about the situation, and to tell her he loved her. Jeremy Glick called his wife and told her, "The others and myself have voted to attack the terrorists. I have my butter knife from breakfast."
Another passenger, Tom Burnett, reached his wife Deena and told her that the plane had been hijacked and that "a group of us is going to do something." She advised him to just sit down and stay quiet, but he replied, "Deena, if they're going to crash the plane into the ground, we have to do something. We can't wait for the authorities. We have to do something now."
Todd Beamer tried to call his wife using one of those phones attached to the back of a seat, an Airfone, but couldn't get authorization for the call. He was transferred to a GTE operator, Lisa Jefferson in Oakbrook, Illinois. Beamer told Lisa that he and some other passengers were planning to jump the terrorists and attempt to regain control of the plane. He asked Lisa to pray with him and the other passengers, and she did, first the Lord's Prayer, then Psalm 23, the Psalm of David, "the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want...Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me..."
At the conclusion of the prayer, Todd uttered his famous words that will live in American history, along with such phrases as "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead," "Nuts," "I have not yet begun to fight" and "I regret that I have but one life to give for my country."
Todd said to his fellow passengers, "Are you guys ready? Let's roll!"
Other passengers remained on the phone to loved ones on the ground, and told them that Beamer's group had rushed the cockpit. Honor Wainio told her stepmother. "I need to go, they're getting ready to break into the cockpit. I love you. Goodbye."
Sandy Bradshaw told her husband, "Everyone's running to first class, I've got to go. Bye."
Flight Attendant CeeCee Lyles yelled to her husband, "They're doing it! They're doing it! They're doing it!"
It is clear that the group of passenger heroes, which included Todd Beamer, Tom Barnett, Jeremy Glick and Mark Bingham, rushed the cockpit and fought the terrorists. Shortly thereafter, the plane crashed into the ground in Western Pennsylvania. The last moments are described by Jeff Head at the Memorial Site for Flight 93:
Another passenger, Tom Burnett, reached his wife Deena and told her that the plane had been hijacked and that "a group of us is going to do something." She advised him to just sit down and stay quiet, but he replied, "Deena, if they're going to crash the plane into the ground, we have to do something. We can't wait for the authorities. We have to do something now."
Todd Beamer tried to call his wife using one of those phones attached to the back of a seat, an Airfone, but couldn't get authorization for the call. He was transferred to a GTE operator, Lisa Jefferson in Oakbrook, Illinois. Beamer told Lisa that he and some other passengers were planning to jump the terrorists and attempt to regain control of the plane. He asked Lisa to pray with him and the other passengers, and she did, first the Lord's Prayer, then Psalm 23, the Psalm of David, "the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want...Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me..."
At the conclusion of the prayer, Todd uttered his famous words that will live in American history, along with such phrases as "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead," "Nuts," "I have not yet begun to fight" and "I regret that I have but one life to give for my country."
Todd said to his fellow passengers, "Are you guys ready? Let's roll!"
Other passengers remained on the phone to loved ones on the ground, and told them that Beamer's group had rushed the cockpit. Honor Wainio told her stepmother. "I need to go, they're getting ready to break into the cockpit. I love you. Goodbye."
Sandy Bradshaw told her husband, "Everyone's running to first class, I've got to go. Bye."
Flight Attendant CeeCee Lyles yelled to her husband, "They're doing it! They're doing it! They're doing it!"
It is clear that the group of passenger heroes, which included Todd Beamer, Tom Barnett, Jeremy Glick and Mark Bingham, rushed the cockpit and fought the terrorists. Shortly thereafter, the plane crashed into the ground in Western Pennsylvania. The last moments are described by Jeff Head at the Memorial Site for Flight 93:
Investigators reviewing all of the evidence, including the cockpit recording, are now operating under the premise that the passengers made their way 110 feet from the rear of the plane to the cockpit, taking out the hijacker claiming to have the bomb along the way. They then stormed the cockpit. The last transmissions on the cockpit recording picked up the sounds of a struggle, of the crash of dishes, a man’s voice screaming loudly. The hijackers are heard calling to each other to hold the door. One of the passengers yells, “Let’s get them!” and then more crashing and screaming. One hijacker tells his confederates that the end is near. The hijackers hurriedly talk about finishing off the plane as the intensity of the struggle grows, and at this point the plane begins to dive. One of the hijackers cry out, “Allah Akbar!” The cockpit voice recorder picks up more shouting by one of the male passengers. . The hijackers apparently begin to fight among themselves for the controls, demanding, “Give it to me.” ... then silence. ... United Airline Flight 93 had plunged nose first into a field about eighty miles south of Pittsburgh, PA, near Shanksville leaving a crater almost fifty feet deep. Nothing was left except the thousands of small charred pieces of the exploded aircraft for officials to sift through.The heroes of Flight 93 are gone now, but their inspiration remains. Let our own resolve match theirs in our intent to defeat Muslim tyranny and Islamic terrorism, and let us never forget the men and women who fought the terrorists to the death.
You can review the obituaries of 38 of the 40 victims of United Flight 93 at Find A Grave.
The field in Pennsylvania
where Flight 93 went down.
Saturday, September 09, 2006
Path to 9/11: The Hypocrisy of the Democrats
The Democratic Party is one of the most skilled and most Machiavellian manipulators of news and public opinion. To hear them now caterwauling over ABC's planned miniseries "The Path to 9/11" is truly laughable. Even more so when you consider that ABC is merely portraying the findings of the 9/11 Commission, hardly a pro-Republican body.
Democrats affect me like Muslims do. They are so outrageously wrong and immoral that they are off the scale. I am incredulous at their antics, but since I expect them to be outrageous, I find it hard to be offended. It would be as useless as being offended by comments from someone with Tourette's Syndrome, and so I am not.
Back in 2004, Sean Hannity wrote that one of the strategems of the Democrats was to demand and obtain the resignation of a key Bush administration official. The demand would not be based on the performance of the official, but merely an attempt to manufacture a scandal that the Dems could exploit to undermine Bush's credibility. They have periodically demanded the resignation of both Karl Rove and Donald Rumsfield, the latter as recently as last week. The lesson here should be obvious: Democrats don't give a rat's ass about protecting the nation from terrorism. They care only about getting back their political power, and will run over anyone or anything that stands in their way.
Also in 2004, when the 9/11 Commission was holding its hearings, the phony known as Richard Clarke, a Democrat and former Clinton official who was demoted under Bush, released his highly biased book Against All Enemies. The book release was almost simultaneous with Clarke's testimony before the Commission where he lauded Clinton's "preparedness" and denigrated Bush's lack thereof. Clarke even dishonestly stated:
Then there was the problem of former Clinton official Sandy Berger, who stole around 50 highly classified terrorism-related documents from the National Archives before testifying before the 9/11 Commission. Berger later admitted to cutting up some of the documents with a pair of scissors. Wikipedia states:
Democrats affect me like Muslims do. They are so outrageously wrong and immoral that they are off the scale. I am incredulous at their antics, but since I expect them to be outrageous, I find it hard to be offended. It would be as useless as being offended by comments from someone with Tourette's Syndrome, and so I am not.
Back in 2004, Sean Hannity wrote that one of the strategems of the Democrats was to demand and obtain the resignation of a key Bush administration official. The demand would not be based on the performance of the official, but merely an attempt to manufacture a scandal that the Dems could exploit to undermine Bush's credibility. They have periodically demanded the resignation of both Karl Rove and Donald Rumsfield, the latter as recently as last week. The lesson here should be obvious: Democrats don't give a rat's ass about protecting the nation from terrorism. They care only about getting back their political power, and will run over anyone or anything that stands in their way.
Also in 2004, when the 9/11 Commission was holding its hearings, the phony known as Richard Clarke, a Democrat and former Clinton official who was demoted under Bush, released his highly biased book Against All Enemies. The book release was almost simultaneous with Clarke's testimony before the Commission where he lauded Clinton's "preparedness" and denigrated Bush's lack thereof. Clarke even dishonestly stated:
"as I briefed Rice on Al-Qaeda, her facial expression gave me the impression she had never heard of the term before."Clarke was, of course, lying through his teeth. Rice produced a speech made a year before 9/11, in 2000, in which she discussed al-Qaeda and warned:
"[To deal with] Osama bin Laden, do two things, the first is you really have to get the intelligence agencies better organized to deal with the terrorist threat to the United States itself. One of the problems that we have is a kind of split responsibility, of course, between the CIA in foreign intelligence and the FBI in domestic intelligence. There needs to be better cooperation because we don't want to wake up one day and find out that Osama bin Laden has been successful on our own territory."Her words were utterly prophetic, while Clarke's were merely pathetic. It was obvious that Clarke's disingenuous machinations before the Committee in March 2004 were merely a Democrat's attempt to influence the coming 2004 presidential election. Even more despicable, Clarke pretended to apologize to the families of 9/11 victims on behalf of the Bush administration, saying he was sorry that "we failed you." His apology, like every other public utterance he made in 2004, was an insincere and cynical attempt to lay the blame for 9/11 at Bush's feet.
Then there was the problem of former Clinton official Sandy Berger, who stole around 50 highly classified terrorism-related documents from the National Archives before testifying before the 9/11 Commission. Berger later admitted to cutting up some of the documents with a pair of scissors. Wikipedia states:
"The document theft raised questions about whether Mr. Berger was attempting to cover up the Clinton administration's anti-terrorism policies and actions. The records he took were related to internal assessments of the Clinton administration's handling of the terrorist threat in December 1999 to bomb airports in the United States."The Justice Department later stated that no originals were destroyed and all originals were made available to the 9/11 Commission. However, Wikidedia adds:
Yet it remains unclear exactly what was removed from the National Archives. "What information could be so embarrassing that a man with decades of experience in handling classified documents would risk being caught pilfering our nation's most sensitive secrets?" House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., said.Obviously, when it comes to the question of terrorist acts against the United States, the Democrats have something to hide. Perhaps, if the Dems can't persuade ABC to shelve "The Path to 9/11," they can send in Sandy Berger with a new pair of scissors.
Monday, September 04, 2006
A Call To Islam Rejected
Recently an American member of al-Quaeda, one Adam Gadahn, made a "Call to Islam" to Americans and Christians. A "Call to Islam" is in reality a demand to accept Islam or die.
The Koran requires that Muslims make such a call before they are allowed to begin slaughtering the people to whom the call is made. Osama Bin Laden made such a call before he carried out his 9/11 attack on the Twin Towers.
Michelle Malkin has transcribed some of Adam Gadahn's words from his videotaped Call To Islam:
"Islam is the only religion acceptable to God and came with the revealed book, the Koran, which abrogates all previous revelations, like the Torah and Evangel... God recognizes no separation between religion and state..."
"To Americans and the rest of Christendom we say, either repent (your) misguided ways and enter into the light of truth or keep your poison to yourself and suffer the consequences in this world and the next..."
My response to this bearded barbarian is as follows:
1. Islam is most certainly not acceptable to God. It is the false religion of a false prophet, and its book the Koran an illiterate mishmash of hatred and calls to violence. We reject Islam, the Koran and their false prophet completely and without reservation.
2. It is you Muslims who had better repent and change your misguided ways, or suffer the consquences "in this world and the next." After 14 centuries of your violence, oppression and tyranny, the world is increasingly fed up with you. The retribution that is due you is well earned and overdue. It is time you were repaid, with interest.
It strains all credulity to believe that the lice-infested, illiterate Mohammed, a robber, thief, rapist and murderer, is a "prophet of God." The immorality, selfishness and cruelty of this man are utterly repugnant and overwhelm the moral senses. Just when one believes that human depravity, cruelty and savagery could descend no further, one discovers Islam. It is then that he realizes that the depths of human evil are almost limitless, especially as expressed in this "religion" most vile.
If you don't fully understand my response, Adam Gadahn, let me put it to you in clear terms. You can take your false religion, false prophet and your Koran and shove them straight up your ass.
The Koran requires that Muslims make such a call before they are allowed to begin slaughtering the people to whom the call is made. Osama Bin Laden made such a call before he carried out his 9/11 attack on the Twin Towers.
Michelle Malkin has transcribed some of Adam Gadahn's words from his videotaped Call To Islam:
"Islam is the only religion acceptable to God and came with the revealed book, the Koran, which abrogates all previous revelations, like the Torah and Evangel... God recognizes no separation between religion and state..."
"To Americans and the rest of Christendom we say, either repent (your) misguided ways and enter into the light of truth or keep your poison to yourself and suffer the consequences in this world and the next..."
My response to this bearded barbarian is as follows:
1. Islam is most certainly not acceptable to God. It is the false religion of a false prophet, and its book the Koran an illiterate mishmash of hatred and calls to violence. We reject Islam, the Koran and their false prophet completely and without reservation.
2. It is you Muslims who had better repent and change your misguided ways, or suffer the consquences "in this world and the next." After 14 centuries of your violence, oppression and tyranny, the world is increasingly fed up with you. The retribution that is due you is well earned and overdue. It is time you were repaid, with interest.
It strains all credulity to believe that the lice-infested, illiterate Mohammed, a robber, thief, rapist and murderer, is a "prophet of God." The immorality, selfishness and cruelty of this man are utterly repugnant and overwhelm the moral senses. Just when one believes that human depravity, cruelty and savagery could descend no further, one discovers Islam. It is then that he realizes that the depths of human evil are almost limitless, especially as expressed in this "religion" most vile.
If you don't fully understand my response, Adam Gadahn, let me put it to you in clear terms. You can take your false religion, false prophet and your Koran and shove them straight up your ass.
Sunday, September 03, 2006
The Joys of Reading the Qur'an
I received this message from Guy, a conservative farmer in Oregon. It's good enough to post as an article in itself!
--------------------
Hey Stogie, I too took a shot at reading the Koh-ran, as we say in southern Oregon. I had hoped there might be even a grain or two of mystic revelation, understanding of human nature or thoughtful reflection on the mind of god. Imagine my disappointment. Now I know what those moslems mean when their eyes go all flat and they say "you westerners just don't understand the holy teachings!" Of course we don't understand, that is the whole point, there is nothing to understand. Just unflagging robot like adherence. A sort of death impelled spiritual automaton wherein all choice and semblence of consciousness is squeezed out of us. Reading the koh-ran was a beneficial experience, much like getting chicken pox. I won't have to go through that again.
Guido
--------------------
Hey Stogie, I too took a shot at reading the Koh-ran, as we say in southern Oregon. I had hoped there might be even a grain or two of mystic revelation, understanding of human nature or thoughtful reflection on the mind of god. Imagine my disappointment. Now I know what those moslems mean when their eyes go all flat and they say "you westerners just don't understand the holy teachings!" Of course we don't understand, that is the whole point, there is nothing to understand. Just unflagging robot like adherence. A sort of death impelled spiritual automaton wherein all choice and semblence of consciousness is squeezed out of us. Reading the koh-ran was a beneficial experience, much like getting chicken pox. I won't have to go through that again.
Guido
Friday, September 01, 2006
Labor Day Weekend
Yeeha! We have a three day weekend staring us in the face, and I just bought a 60 inch Sony High Definition television. It's all set up and working perfectly. Mrs. Chomper and I have been wanting one for some time. Last weekend a great sales woman talked us into it, not that we needed much persuading. The images are so large and so sharp that you can see acne scars in the actors' faces. Well, I guess every great thing does have some drawbacks. Imagine seeing Hillary up close, large and snarling. It could be fatal if anyone with a heart problem is watching.
I really don't watch a lot of television, but with this baby I will watch more. Fortunately a lot of HDTV channels are now available to us and a lot of movies are now being broadcast in high definition. Last night "Empire of the Sun" was on and I stayed up and watched most of it. The scenes with the American P-51's strafing and bombing the Japanese military installation was realistic and exciting. We also have surround sound, a great sound system built into our walls that came with the house.
Ahh, I can hardly wait!
I really don't watch a lot of television, but with this baby I will watch more. Fortunately a lot of HDTV channels are now available to us and a lot of movies are now being broadcast in high definition. Last night "Empire of the Sun" was on and I stayed up and watched most of it. The scenes with the American P-51's strafing and bombing the Japanese military installation was realistic and exciting. We also have surround sound, a great sound system built into our walls that came with the house.
Ahh, I can hardly wait!
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